Abstract
This paper asks: Who is the stranger? Who defines this and for whom? How
do we encounter the stranger? I begin by tracing Malaysia’s treatment of
refugees, as paradigmatic of the marginalised, in the time of coronavirus
when the Government of Malaysia had imposed a partial lockdown from
March to September 2020. A cursory scoping of headlines during this
period not only answers those questions but is also revelatory of the shifts
in mind-sets and treatment of refugees in Malaysia; one from civility to
hostility. I contrast that with my personal encounter with refugee female
leaders. And I offer a theology of hospitality from a feminist-postcolonial
lens borne from this encounter of difference, mutuality and reciprocity.
do we encounter the stranger? I begin by tracing Malaysia’s treatment of
refugees, as paradigmatic of the marginalised, in the time of coronavirus
when the Government of Malaysia had imposed a partial lockdown from
March to September 2020. A cursory scoping of headlines during this
period not only answers those questions but is also revelatory of the shifts
in mind-sets and treatment of refugees in Malaysia; one from civility to
hostility. I contrast that with my personal encounter with refugee female
leaders. And I offer a theology of hospitality from a feminist-postcolonial
lens borne from this encounter of difference, mutuality and reciprocity.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 21-29 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | Concilium |
Volume | 2021 |
Issue number | 1 |
Publication status | Published - 2021 |
Keywords
- Stranger
- theology of hospitality
- Feminist-postcolonial
- refugee
- Malaysia
- COVID-19